The present invention relates to sound-controllable apparatus for controlling a device by sound commands. The invention is particularly useful for controlling toy robots, and is therefore described below with respect to this application for purposes of example.
Many types of toy robots are known which include drives for driving the robot over horizontal surfaces, and other devices for performing other function, such as blinking lights, sound generators, and the like. Such robots generally receive their command signals by means of a wire link between the transmitter and the robot. The need for such a wire link not only limits the mobility of the toy robot, but also detracts from the entertainment value of manipulating such a robot. It has been proposed to control the robot by a wireless link, such as by the use of radio frequency commands, infrared commands or sound commands, but such systems substantially increase the overall cost of the toy robot.